How to determine what activities are sports and which are non-sports.

First of all, if you want the full definition click here, if you want to keep it simple keep reading.

So, start with the definition of a sport, taken right out of the dictionary

What is a sport: An activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and undertaken competitively.

That seems simple enough doesn't it? So then does that mean that synchronized swimming is really a sport? What about golf or darts or bull riding? In order to determine what really is a sport I had to dig a little deeper. It was necessary to get at the heart of the definition, what does it really mean, in order for us to determine what types of activities can properly be called sports and which cannot.

To do this it was important to establish an objective set of criteria based upon the definition of the word "sport". By comparing an activity with the criteria established by the definition of the word sport, it becomes quite easy to determine what activities can rightfully be called sports and which activities are just wannabes, the non-sports of the world.

So here is how to determine what is a sport and what is not.

The definition of a sport is broken down into four categories: 1) physical exertion, 2) skill, 3) rules, and 4) competition. Then the four categories are broken down into sub categories. By applying a simple scoring system to each of the four categories and then adding up the points you can easily determine what is a sport and what is not.

The scoring system is quite simple. 75-100 points and it's a sport, 74 and lower and it's a non-sport. Think of it this way, an activity only has to receive average grades in order to be considered a sport.

Here is the breakdown of what a score will indicate for a particular activity:

Thus, anything below 75 points is considered a non-sport and should be treated as such by the media, the participants, and those that find enjoyment in watching others participate in the activity.

Here is the breakdown and an explanation for each of the four categories.

The four characteristics of a sport, according to the definition, physical exertion, skill, rules, and competition are broken down into the following measurable categories:

(Remember, this is the simplified version, to get the full version click here.)

Physical exertion is measured by:
· Conditioning Factor
· Endurance Factor- "Toll" Factor
· Lifespan Factor
· Injury Factor
· Who or what Factor

The amount of skill is measured based on:
· Practice Factor
· Body type Factor
· Athlete Factor
· Equipment Mastery Factor
· Equipment Involvement/Participation Factor

Rules are measured based on:
· How the winner is determined

Competition is measured based on:
· Physical Contact Factor
· Offense/Defense Factor
· Interaction Factor
· Environment Factor
· Crowd Factor

With that said, click here for a sample